Hulk Hogan vs Gawker Verdict

TMZ.com is reporting that Hulk Hogan won his case against Gawker, and won an astounding $115 million.

Hogan had only sued for $100 million, but the jury decided it wasn’t enough and bumped it up to $115 million.

The breakdown of the payout is as follows – $55 million for economic injuries and $60 million for emotional distress. He could get even more with punitive damages.

Hogan had argued that he had no idea he was being recorded when he had sex with his friend’s wife at their home in Florida back in 2007.

Gawker published 1 minute and 50 seconds of the video without Hulk’s permission. Hogan claimed it was the ultimate invasion of his privacy.

Hulk Hogan And Gawker Head To Court Monday, Potential Jurors Uneasy About Having To Watch Sex Tape

Hulk Hogan's lawsuit against online media company Gawker is set to begin on Monday, March 7, 2016. The $100-million defamation and invasion of privacy trial will take place near Hogan's hometown in St. Petersburg, Florida.

In 2006, Hogan had sex with Heather Clem, the wife of radio personality, Bubba 'The Love Sponge' Clem. The sexual encountered was captured on video and Gawker published portions of the sex tape six years later. Hogan claims that Gawker has violated his privacy, damaged his reputation, and caused him severe emotional and mental distress.

The New York Times paints the legal battle as an unprecedented conflict between personal privacy and freedom of expression in the Internet Era. On one hand, Hogan claims that the privacy of every American is at stake in the trial, as nothing would be private if Gawker prevails. On the other hand, Gawker avers that the freedom of the press will be further eroded if Hogan is victorious.

Hulk Hogan, Vince McMahon And Roddy Piper Talk WWE WrestleMania I For MSG Network

The MSG Network will air a special on WWE's WrestleMania I tonight at 10:30pm, as detailed below. The special is narrated by actor Ben Stiller and will feature the late Roddy Piper, Vince McMahon, Hulk Hogan, Mean Gene Okerlund, Cyndi Lauper and others. The following was issued:

"THE GARDEN'S DEFINING MOMENTS" SERIES CONTINUES WITH "WRESTLEMANIA I" PREMIERING FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12 AT 10:30PM

New York, NY (February 11, 2016) – MSG Networks (NYSE: MSGN) continues the special 20-part television event "The Garden's Defining Moments" presented by SAP with - "WrestleMania I." The event that launched the WWF (now WWE) into the stratosphere and married sports and entertainment for the first time, set a then record for pay-per-view buys in the United States.

"The Garden's Defining Moments: WrestleMania I," narrated by Ben Stiller, premieres Friday, February 12 at 10:30 pm on MSG Network, following MSG's telecast of the Rangers \ Kings game. Interview subjects include Vince McMahon, Hulk Hogan, the late Roddy Piper, Cyndi Lauper, Mean Gene Okerlund and more.

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More Triple H-Royal Rumble Stats

We noted before that Triple H set a new record with his Rumble win - the longest time between Rumble match victories as his last win came in 2002. Here are some other stats from the win:

* Triple H became the oldest winner of the Rumble at 46 years and 6 months old, with the exception of Vince McMahon, who won the Rumble at 53 in 1999

* He joins the list of two-time Rumble winners with Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels, Batista, John Cena and the only three-time winner, Steve Austin

* Triple H became the third-oldest world champion in WWE history, behind Vince at 54 in 1999 and Hulk Hogan at 48 in 2002

Scott Hall Comments on Sting’s WWE Experiences

“I was there and obviously involved in his match at WrestleMania last year. We’re rehearsing the match in Cali last year at Levi Stadium, and it’s the Kliq and the New Age Outlaws out there, and we all know each other. And then there’s Sting, who doesn’t know anybody. He’s an outsider. I just think he never felt comfortable there. Being hurt was answered prayer for him–just let it end.

You need to remember that Vince is never going to go with something he didn’t create. But we didn’t get anything done at the rehearsal the night before, so WrestleMania day, there were tents in the parking lot set up with rings for rehearsal. So we’re all in there again, and I’m next to Hulk on the ring apron and Triple H is going over the match and then he goes, ‘OK, he’ll break the sledgehammer, then I’ll hit him with the sledgehammer, and cover him, 1-2-3.’ I looked at Hulk, and Hulk looked at me, and I was thinking, ‘Sting, what kind of lawyer do you have, bro? You’re coming in the door doing a job? You weren’t even guaranteed to go over?’ That’s Vince just reminding you who won, even if he’s going to make money the other way.”

Triple H Speaks Out on Hulk Hogan Possibly Returning to WWE, Reveals Whether Or Not He Thinks Hogan Can Be Forgiven and More

WWE star Triple H called into “Greg and the Morning Buzz” today for “Lend A Helping Can” and to promote Survivor Series on Sunday, and during the call-in Triple H talked about Hulk Hogan’s firing and whether or not WWE would have him back. Below is a quote from Triple H:

On whether or not Hogan can one day return to WWE, or at least the Hall of Fame:

“For me I hope so. It’s about reinvigorating his brand and him as a human being and the confidence within the world as to who he is. But the one thing about people in general, when somebody is on top they love to see him fall and when they fall they love to see him make that comeback. They’re great stories and I think that’s where people are. Do I think he can be forgiven and make amends with the world and move forward? Ya absolutely. But at the same point in time for us in that time frame you’re putting up a message to the world of how you’ll tolerate things and how you’ll react to things. And we did what we needed to do and he’ll do what he needs to do to get himself back.

And its not, to me, at the end of the day for him, how he’s perceived by the world, him as a human being, I’m sure is a lot more important to him than anything else. And re-establishing who he is as a human being I’m sure is of utmost important to him and I’m sure he’s gonna do it and when he does we’ll go from there.”

Camp WWE Cartoon Update

Regarding the status of the highly anticipated Camp WWE adult cartoon, the episodes had to be redone because Hulk Hogan was one of the characters. CM Punk also had to be removed at one time.

Rumor Mill - WWE Reportedly Tells Talents Not To Have Contact With Hulk Hogan

WWE officials have reportedly reached out to all talents, including those no longer wrestling but still affiliated with the company, and told them not to have any contact with Hulk Hogan due to the racist comments scandal.

This comes after Hogan recently went on a media tour in hope of getting back with the company. Hogan has an upcoming one-night appearance in the UK with former WWE talents Lanny Poffo, Jimmy Hart, Outback Jack, Bushwacker Luke and Fred Ottman (Tugboat).

Did Hulk Hogan Talk To Vince McMahon After The Racist Comments Scandal?, Hogan Talks WWE

Hulk Hogan recently spoke with Sports Illustrated's Extra Mustard blog. The full interview is at this link. He commented on the fallout with WWE after The National Enquirer revealed racist comments he made years ago. Hogan says he never talked to Vince McMahon and it was Triple H who cut ties with him. Below are some quotes:

"I never talked to Vince. The only person I talked to was Triple H. I called him and told him there was some old news coming out from when TMZ first reported the tape and there were some racial slurs on it. Triple H said, 'OK, thanks for calling. Let me talk to Vince.' He called me back a half hour later and he goes, 'I've got some news and it isn't good. Vince said that you need to resign.' I never heard from Vince or talked to Vince. In the middle of the night, they just fired me."

"They had to do what was best for business. Triple H was telling me the USA Network was reacting very badly, and they had to make a quick decision, and that was to put me out to pasture. They were under heavy fire and they were scrambling."

"That's not characteristic of what the WWE does. Vince McMahon reaches out and helps people. If you're a drug abuser or you abuse alcohol, Vince McMahon and the WWE reach out and help people. So what's so uncommon about this was they took the symptoms, said, 'Oh my god, there's a symptom of being a racist,' and threw me away. They usually go to the source. They've known me for over 30 years and they know I'm not a racist, so they should have went to the source. I don't use the word, ever, except for in that moment of anger, so I wish WWE went to the source instead of the symptoms. I could have explained I've tried every day since then to be a better man."

"The only place for me to be would be the WWE. That's where my home is. I thought I'd go step-by-step, crawling uphill with WWE, to explain how wrong I was, but that opportunity wasn't there. I'd love to sit down and connect with Vince. A lot of people make mistakes. If we were all judged by our weakest moment, it would be a sad world. If I had a chance to work with Vince and help people, we could help fix a lot of things together."

WWE Officially Comments on a Potential Hulk Hogan Return

The Hollywood Reporter covered Hogan’s appearance on the show this morning and noted they reached out to WWE and asked if Hogan’s apology would have any bearing on a possible Hogan return to WWE.

“At this time, the WWE remains steadfast in its decision”, was the official response WWE gave to The Hollywood Reporter.

Hulk Hogan on Racial Slur Scandal: 'Please Forgive Me ... People Get Better'

With his signature leg drop, horseshoe moustache and undeniable strength, 12-time world wrestling champion Hulk Hogan single-handedly transformed wrestling into a global phenomenon, but he's now he’s fighting to maintain his legacy after fallout over his admitted use of the n-word.

In an exclusive interview with ABC News’ Amy Robach that aired Monday on "Good Morning America," a contrite and emotional Hogan talked about the circumstances surrounding his use of the n-word. He steadfastly denied being a racist and begged his fans for forgiveness.

In addition to the scandal involving his use of the n-word in the past, the 62-year-old is embroiled in a legal battle with Gawker Media following the gossip website's publication of excerpts from a secretly recorded tape that showed Hogan having sex. The tape is believed to have been recorded between 2006 and 2007.

Hogan is suing Gawker Media for $100 million for releasing those excerpts from the sex tape. Heather Dietrick, Gawker's president and general counsel, has argued that that publication was an issue of newsworthiness.

Hogan's camp claims that the audio in which Hogan is heard making racist comments is from another part of the same tape. Gawker Media told ABC News that the racist recording is from a completely different tape that is not part of the lawsuit and that it had nothing to do with its leak or publication.


Born Terry Bollea, the man behind the once-indestructible “Hulkster” was wiped from the WWE's Hall of Fame last month after his use of the racial slur was revealed.

Hogan told Robach that he had been "upset over a situation that happened" between his daughter, Brooke Bollea, and her boyfriend. That's when he referred to his daughter's then boyfriend using the n-word.

Hogan said he had "no idea" that he was being taped, explaining: "I was to the point where I wanted to kill myself, you know?"

He described how he sat in his bathroom by himself, his estranged wife and children gone.

"I was completely broken and destroyed and said, ‘What's the easiest way out of this?' I mean, I was lost," he said.

Asked whether he was suicidal, Hogan replied, "Yes, I was."

Then Robach asked: "Are you a racist?"

"I'm not a racist but I never should have said what I said. It was wrong. I'm embarrassed by it," he said, but added: "People need to realize that you inherit things from your environment. And where I grew up was south Tampa, Port Tampa, and it was a really rough neighborhood, very low income. And all my friends, we greeted each other saying that word."

He added that the word was "just thrown around like it was nothing."

Asked whether it was fair to say that he inherited a racial bias, Hogan agreed that he did.

"I would say that is very fair. The ... the environment I grew up in in south Tampa and all my white friends, all my black friends, to hear the word on a daily basis when they'd greet me in the morning, that's what they'd say to me, 'Good morning,' so-and-so," he said. "I think that was part of the culture and the environment I grew up in and I think that's fair to say."

As for his fans who may feel let down by his actions, Hogan asked for forgiveness.

“Oh, my gosh. Please forgive me. Please forgive me," he said. "I think if you look at the whole picture of who Hulk Hogan is, you can see over all the years that there's not a racist bone in my body."

He said he has forgiven himself, telling Robach that it wasn't hard for him to do because he's not a racist.

"I'm a nice guy. It's not, you know, not the Hulk Hogan that rips a shirt off and bang, bang, bang, slams giants, you know? I'm Terry Bollea," he said.

But the WWE -– formerly the WWF –- took drastic action. It fired the wrestling legend and removed his image and name from its website's Hall of Fame.

Hogan was shocked.

"I've worked for the WWE for almost 30 years off and on ... and then all of a sudden, everything I've done my whole career and my whole life was like it never happened," he said.

He described the WWE's actions as "devastating."

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Hulk Hogan Appearing On TV Shows This Monday To Talk Gawker, Sex Tape And Racist Comments

WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan was in New York City this week participating in media interviews as he tries to repair his image after the racist comments scandal that was revealed by The National Enquirer this summer.

Hogan will be on ABC's Good Morning America this Monday morning and on ABC's Nightline Monday night, according to his Twitter. He also has a People Magazine interview coming out this week.

Hulk Hogan Accused Of Lying Under Oath

The National Enquirer has a new article saying Hulk Hogan has been accused of lying under oath.

Their report notes that court transcripts reveal Hogan allegedly made conflicting statements to the FBI and to lawyers for the Gawker website, who Hogan has the $100 million lawsuit against. During a hearing on July 2nd, Gawker attorney Seth Berlin told the judge that he had learned Hogan made statements under oath during a talk with the FBI and during a deposition that are "directly at odds with another." Berlin wrote:

"So we have a situation... where the key participant, the plaintiff, is telling us one thing under oath and telling the FBI something else."

Legal experts told The Enquirer, who recently revealed the racist comments made by Hogan in 2008, that if the accusation is true, Hogan would be guilty of either perjury or obstruction of justice, depending on if he lied to the Gawker lawyers or the FBI. Those charges could potentially carry jail time, as defense attorney Anthony Brooklier told The Enquirer:

"That's how Martha Stewart got nailed. It wasn't insider trading that put her in jail. It was the lie she told to the cops."

Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson Offers His Thoughts On Hulk Hogan Controversy

While promoting the HBO dramedy series Ballers at the Television Critics Association's press tour in Beverly Hills, California on Thursday, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson was asked about Hulk Hogan (real name Terry Bollea), whose termination from WWE last week coincided with the publication by the National Enquirer and Radar Online of racist remarks allegedly made by the wrestling legend on a leaked sex tape.

"I was pretty disappointed with what I heard, like all of us, by the way," said Johnson. "I've known Terry for a lot of years, my dad helped train him in Florida in the '70s when he was breaking into the business. My uncles helped train him too as well. I have not known the man to be racist."

Johnson adds that while there's no justification for what Hogan said, he believes everyone has "talked trash," especially in private.

"It's funny, it's one of those things where—and not justifying what he said—we've all talked trash, especially in private," said Johnson. "He said what he said, and he's paying the price."

Vince McMahon Comments on Possible Financial Ramifications of Hogan Firing; WWE Stock Soars

Vince McMahon participated in a WWE second quarter conference call today, and during the call Vince was asked several questions about WWE’s current financial state.

One of the questions specifically pertained to Hulk Hogan’s firing, and how it might impact the company due to his merchandise sales. Vince answered by saying Hogan’s firing has “no material effect on them.”

Following the release of today’s second quarter earnings report, WWE stock is currently up 18.69%, trading at $19.54 per share.

Hulk Hogan's Lawyer Tells Judge 'His Career Is Done,' Gawker Trial Date Set, New Claims From Linda

TampaBay.com covered today's hearing in Terry "Hulk Hogan" Bollea's lawsuit against Gawker for publishing clips of a sex tape that bad been shot by a home security system without his permission. Most of the conversation centered around Hogan's side accusing Gawker of leaked the racist and homophobic comments that Radar and The National Enquirer published this past week.

Hogan's attorneys told the judge that "We want the chance to prove they (Gawker) were directly involved in this," accusing Gawker of "ruining my client's career and potentially ruining his right to a fair trial." Their argument amounted to being that Gawker never wanted the records of the FBI investigation into Los Angeles attorney Keith Davidson allegedly trying to extort $150,000 from Hogan for the videos to help with their defense. Instead, Hogan's side argued, they were "on a path to get this stuff out to the media."

Gawker's recent outing of a publishing executive who attempted to hire a male prostitute was also brought up with the idea that they leaked the transcript to counter negative publicity against the company. That said, the post by Gawker founder Nick Denton alluding to Hogan having another secret (presumably the racist comments) he was trying to protect came a week before the outing controversy. Hogan's lawyers want a forensic investigation of Gawker's computers,

Gawker's attorneys explained that "There are, your honor, a long list of people who knew about Mr. Bollea's use of racist language long before Gawker learned about it." Apparently, a transcript was going around in Tampa at least as far back as 2012. "It cannot be seriously maintained that if this leaked to the Nat. Enquirer, that it came from us," as too many people had access to it. Hogan's lawyers didn't buy it. "His career is done. He's been fired from WWE. At this point judge, we want to find out what happened here." They don't take the Enquirer reporter's claim that it wasn't Gawker at face value, citing a post that shows Gawker knows how to leak things anonymously.

The judge didn't rule on anything today. However, she did set a new trial date: March 7, 2016. Hogan's side was not happy with the delay, but the judge's calendar is full until then due to a ton of mortgage foreclosures she has to deal with. Hogan's side brought up the idea of another judge hearing the case, but it didn't go anywhere.

Meanwhile, Radar Online spoke to Raymond Rafool, the attorney representing Hogan's ex-wife, Linda. He's alleging that Hogan's comments in the transcripts may contradict some of his sworn testimony during the divorce, specifically relating to being blindsided by Linda filing and some issues over the Las Vegas condo he said he was worried about being forced into selling. Hogan's side denied there was any potential issue.

New WWE Tough Enough Judge Revealed

The Miz is the new judge on WWE Tough Enough, replacing Hulk Hogan. He joins Paige and Daniel Bryan on the panel. Host Chris Jericho indicated that the third spot could rotate each week.

As noted, Hogan was dropped from the show when WWE terminated his contract due to the racial comments made 8 years ago that was just revealed by The National Enquirer and Radar Online.

Hulk Hogan And Dusty Rhodes Scene To Be Edited From Upcoming WWE Movie, More On Another Change

The Hulk Hogan scandal has caused WWE Studios' to remove a Hogan scene from the Celebrity Death Pool movie that stars David Hasselhoff and Ken Jeong.

PWInsider reports that a piece of Hogan material was also in the upcoming WWE - Scooby Doo animated movie. Hogan was set to appear in scenes alongside an animated Dusty Rhodes and those will obviously have to be edited now. Hopefully they can just replace Hogan and not have to nix the Dusty scene altogether.

Regarding the Hogan scene in Celebrity Death Pool, apparently it was the opening sequence of the movie so it will definitely have to be re-done.

Homophobic Slur Made By Hulk Hogan Released

RadarOnline has released more comments from the tape that contained the racist comments made in 2006 and this time Hogan rants about a gay person he encountered at the home he grew up in.

Hogan was discussing his reality show, Hogan Knows Best with Heather Clem when he said:

"VH1 wanted me to do a big thing and go back to the house I grew up in." Hulk says, discussing the Season Four finale of his show.

"So we knock on the door and a big f*g lives there now! This half-gay was enamored with Linda."

The episode in question featured Hogan visiting the home he was raised in in Port Tampa. The home's new owner welcomed Hogan and even gave him a small metal truck that was found in the garden, that once belonged to Hogan when he was a kid. Hogan continued his rant and ripped into ex-wife Linda Hogan, who he was still married to. Bubba the Love Sponge entered the room and Hogan said:

"Dude, the only thing I will ever ask of you … I don't know how you will pull this off … is, if I am ever on my death bed, you cannot let Linda come and visit me."

Hulk went on to bring up his home in Las Vegas, which he had bought for $4.25 million and watched grow in value to $5 million.

"If I get divorced, Linda will make me sell it."

Hogan then referenced the "black billionaire" Cecile Barker(founder of SoBe Entertainment) again:

"F**k it. Cecile will buy it and give it back to me after the divorce!"

WWE's sordid history of racism makes its swift justice vs. Hogan ring hollow

Everyone knows that the WWE and professional wrestling are fake—a group of finely chiseled athletes, orchestrated by a scripted theater of controversial plots, story arcs and over-the-top characters. Against that backdrop, cult icon Hulk Hogan became the most recognizable face of the WWE after winning the world championship against The Iron Sheik in January 1983, and last week its most stunning big-name dismissal.

Known previously as the WWF, the franchise branded Hogan as The Hulkster and capitalized off of his alluring, patriotic, good-guy persona. In the words of Hogan himself, “Hulkamania was running wild, brother!” Still, while Hulkamaniacs rejoiced, what wasn’t fake was the WWE’s sordid history of exploiting racial stereotypes. For decades the organization capitalized and profited off racist undertones, even while receiving countless criticism over its portrayal and treatment of minority characters. It also has been chided for the fact that in the company’s 63-year history there has never been a unified African-American World Champion. (The Rock, a seven-time WWE champion and noted Hogan nemesis, is bi-racial, having been born to an African-American father and a Samoan mother.)

Nevertheless, the criticism regarding professional wrestling’s premiere franchise never thwarted the company’s multi-million dollar cash machine. While Hogan—a blond, 6’7” Tampa native who first gained famed as Thunderlips in Rocky III in 1982—became an All-American folk hero (before he briefly went to the dark side with the nWo in the rival WCW in 1996), some of the WWE’s most popular characters have been its most controversial. Rowdy Roddy Piper, a Canadian wrestler who wore a kilt and was billed as being from Glasgow, Scotland, was a WWF superstar in the '80s alongside Hogan. Unlike Hogan, Piper was a textbook villain whose entire shtick was built upon spewing brash, lewd comments regarding race and gender. In his on-air segment Piper’s Pit, he once asked wrestler Tony Atlas, who is black, “To get them big arms, do you eat all of that soul food stuff? Do you eat pigs' feet?” After Atlas seemingly took offense to the line of questioning, Piper responded, “Let me tell you something in your own language, I don’t let the thieves stop me from enjoying my watermelon.”

In another interview segment, this time with Fijian wrestler Jimmy (Superfly) Snuka, Piper asked his rival if he grew up climbing trees like a monkey to get coconuts. Piper also once said that Mr. T’s lips looked like “a catcher’s mitt,” and later told him that he would “whip him like a slave.”

Then there was wrestler Ted (The Million Dollar Man) DiBiase, whose black sidekick/bodyguard Virgil was often subjugated and debased as a part of DiBiase’s emerging storyline. In a video from 1987, DiBiase can be seen boasting about how he could easily buy Virgil, to which Virgil responds “Yes-suh!” Throughout their pairing, DiBiase often referred to Virgil as a slave, even having him rub his feet.

And the list doesn’t stop there. Kamala, The Ugandan Headhunter, was billed as being from “Deepest, Darkest Africa,” and exhibited mannerisms and grunts that were almost inhuman. He wrestled with a spear and wore tribal paint on his face and belly. The Junkyard Dog’s gimmick was crafted in the frame of textbook Negro shuck and jive, with him prancing around wearing a dog collar and chains. Former WWE legend and color commentator Jesse (The Body) Ventura once referred to the Junk Yard Dog as having “a mouth full of grits.” Ventura also commonly called fan favorite Tito Santana, a Mexican-American, “Chico” and dubbed his finishing move the “flying burrito.”

Former WWE champ Triple H, who mocked African-American wrestler Booker T for his "nappy hair, once said that “people like Booker T couldn’t win championships," and that in the WWE “they were just there to dance and entertain.” Then there was Cryme Tyme, a tag-team made up of wrestlers JTG and Shad Gaspard and who brandished themselves as thugged out, gangsta rappers. Their catch phrase was, “Yo yo yo, pop a 40 and check ya rollies-it’s Cryme Time,” and they were often shown assaulting police officers and committing robberies.

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